The great hall deep in Snow Bone City was eerie and quiet. The black-robed emperor leaned on the dragon throne, his eyelids drooping.
His eyes were deep and cold, as if he could see through all the living beings in the long river of the mortal world, and see through the dawn and long night of more than a hundred years.
“The Holy Son wants the Star of Calamity to fall… What a pity,” Lin Fuqing sneered. “The Star of Calamity is mine, you cannot touch him.”
At the bottom of the long stairs, Ji Na looked up in disbelief.
He looked at the Demon Lord with the eyes of a madman, his voice trembling with anger and sadness. “Lin Fuqing…you have seen the image of the Purple Star Astrolabe. The calamity star is the source of disasters! Are you going to destroy all the lives of the immortal world just to protect Fang Zhiyuan!?”
Lin Fuqing laughed, “How capable can I be to cause the immortals to suffer? If you want to save the immortal world, find a way to do it yourself. Don’t touch my little star.”
He said it lightly, but Ji Na suddenly realized something. “You’re going to kill me to protect the Star of Calamity, in order to prevent Ziwei Pavillion from trying to get rid of him…”
Ji Na could not understand this madness.
He grew up in Ziwei Pavilion, had little contact with outsiders, and had never felt any deep friendship. The only thing he missed was his master, the previous Saint Master of Ziwei Pavilion, Ruan Mingtong.
But even so, Ji Na could never imagine that one day he would do evil for his master and sacrifice the well-being of the three realms!
“You allowed the world to bleed for your own selfish desires…” Ji Na gritted his teeth and glared at the Demon Lord on the throne. In his heart, he had already equated him with the tyrants in ancient legends. “You are a great evildoer!”
“It’s more than that.” Unexpectedly, Lin Fuqingyu pointed a finger, tilted his head and smiled, but it seemed that there was a cold sword hidden in his smile. “Ziwei, I want not only the evil star, but also you.”
Before he finished speaking, the Demon Lord’s eyes shone, and his five fingers suddenly flexed! Ji Na lost control of his limbs, and his body suddenly rose into the air, as if held by a huge force.
“You……”
Ji Na’s lips were pale blue, and beads of cold sweat run down his equally pale and handsome face.
Dozens of rules of power bound him, and he was like a prey caught in a spider web, unable to move at all.
Lin Fuqing stood up from the Black Silver Dragon Throne and walked to the front of Ji Na with his hands behind his back. He slowly stretched out his hand from his wide sleeves, placed it on Ji Na’s chest, and said sympathetically, “It will be a little painful, bear with it.”
Before he finished speaking, Lin Fuqing quickly snapped his fingers and ripped Ji Na’s soul away from his chest!
“Ah, ah——!!!”
Ji Na threw back his head in agony, an uncontrollable scream tearing from his throat. His eyes were wide open, his pupils shrinking violently.
The pain of soul-splitting was cruel, as if a blunt axe was cutting the flesh, sawing through the ribs. Every inch of nerve seemed to be torn apart, and blood gushed out in an instant.
“It hurts so much.”
Lin Fuqing sighed in disappointment, but his hands did not stop moving. He firmly continued to tear Ji Na’s soul apart. “It’s just splitting the soul in two, but it already hurts this much.”
The Demon Lord sighed secretly: What if he really uses the Nine-Turn Soul-Destroying Formation to punish Fang Zhiyuan? What kind of torture would it be?
“Ahhh!” Ji Na’s pupils were dilated, his hands and feet trembling convulsively. He struggled instinctively but could not get free.
He fainted and woke up from the pain countless times. In this great pain that was worse than death, Ji Na watched in horror… as “he” was split into two identical individuals bit by bit.
This scene was both terrifying and bizarre.
With a thought, the soul could be torn apart. This was the power of transcending tribulation.
At the moment the soul-splitting was completed, both “Ji Na” lost consciousness due to the terrible pain of soul-splitting.
The two Ji Nas looked pale and like two puppets with their strings cut, they fell limply to the sides.
Two bodies fell into the water, splashing everywhere.
The illusion changed again, turning into a lotus lake.
The lake was calm, the red lotus was like fire, and the fireflies were dancing. The distance revealed pavilions and towers. The eaves between the waterside pavilions were decorated with small lanterns, which were bright and warm, like a strange and beautiful fairyland lost in the devil’s domain.
The moonlight and stars in the night sky sprinkled down, falling on the mirror-like surface of the lake, on the tips of each red lotus petal, and also on the shoulders of the Demon Lord.
Lin Fuqing sat in the lotus pond, holding a red lotus in his hand. He did not look at the two unconscious Jinas floating in the lotus pond. Instead, he quietly looked at the sky.
…After he was worshipped as an emperor, he personally built such a place. In fact, he was secretly reminiscing about the white lotus pond in front of his own cave on the main peak of Xuyun.
But even though he was reminiscing about the past, Demon Lord Lin knew in his heart that some things could never be returned.
Perhaps with the secret intention of warning himself, in the end, what he planted in the pond deep in Snow Bone City was not white lotus, but red lotus.
Now, Lin Fuqing lowered his eyes and looked at the red lotus in his hand, thinking to himself: I have finally taken this step again.
…Perhaps in this life, there will no longer be Red Lotus Abyss, Snow Bone City, and this small and exquisite Red Lotus Pond in the fairyland.
Lin Fuqing said softly, “Wake up.”
This is not a request, but a command.
In this sea of consciousness, the Demon Lord is the only master. If he ordered the souls that had fainted from pain to wake up, they must wake up.
The two Ji Nas opened their eyes with difficulty, their bodies still trembling from the pain of being forcibly split.
“Lin… Fu Qing…”
The same two weak voices, containing the same reluctance and humiliation, mixed together and rang out.
At this moment, Ji Na felt unfathomable.
His soul was divided into two, and he could feel two selves at the same time.
With two pairs of eyes and from two angles, he saw the black-robed Demon Lord sitting between the red lotuses.
The art of transforming the spirit into a soul was supposed to be a mysterious technique that only cultivators above the Mahayana stage could practice. But now Ji Na was forced to experience it in advance.
Lin Fuqing casually scooped up one of the Ji Na, and it turned into a soul-like spot of light, which fell into his palm.
Lin Fuqing said calmly, “I have half of your soul…From now on, you must obey me.”
“Devil…” Ji Na lay in the pool, coughing softly. He pushed his wet hair behind his ears and said weakly and hoarsely, “You want to control me… You won’t succeed.”
After saying that, Ji Na closed his eyes sadly and resolutely. The glowing soul in Lin Fuqing’s hand shook violently, and dimmed visibly like a candle that was about to go out.
“Why do you want to kill yourself?” Lin Fuqing said calmly, “This is not good, is it?”
The firefly flew across the demon king’s eyebrows and landed on the black robe that was winding on the surface of the pool. Lin Fuqing played with the spirit in his hand and smiled.
“Think about it. In the entire Three Realms, you are the only one who knows the true face of Lin Fuqing. When I step down from the Mountain, Sea and Stars Terrace, I will still be a bright and handsome little immortal in the eyes of the immortals… right?”
“……”
Ji Na opened his eyes suddenly, sweating profusely.
Lin Fuqing smiled and said, “My master, Taoist Xuyun, loves me, and the Lord of the Golden Osmanthus Palace, Immortal Sovereign Lu, appreciates me. From the inner disciples to the outer sects of Xuyun Sect, everyone respects me like a god. All the immortal sects, whether it is Sword Valley or the Academy, all give me some face… With such a good reputation, if I want to do something evil in the future, who in the immortal world can prevent me? Hmm?”
Ji Na was horrified. He was speechless for a moment, and with red eyes he glared at the Demon Lord for a long time before squeezing out from between his teeth, “What a beast in human form…”
Lin Fuqing made a “huh” sound, raised his head and said, “Holy Son, you are too kind.”
“So…”
The young Demon Lord curved his beautiful long eyes and rosy lips. He hooked his finger, and Ji Na was once again lifted in front of the Demon Lord by an invisible force.
It was as if the most bewitching demon in the legend was living in his body. Lin Fuqing said leisurely,
“Since the Holy Son has the world in his heart, and unfortunately is the only one who knows the true face of this person, he still has to learn to endure humiliation and survive, so that he can find an opportunity to slay demons and eliminate monsters. What I’ve said… isn’t this right?”
Ji Na gritted her teeth and said angrily, “Don’t even think about using me to harm the immortal world.”
“To harm the immortal world?”
Lin Fuqing raised his eyebrows in surprise. He leaned forward and tapped his chin with his finger. “Ah, who said I was going to harm the immortal world? Did your precious star map tell you?”
Ji Na: “…..”
What on earth does this person want to do!?
Lin Fuqing said, “I want you to go into retreat. Your body should obediently stay on the Mountain, Sea and Stars Terrace. For everything else, follow my orders.”
“I will find a new container for this half of your soul. You stay with me… If you dare to move, your soul will be shattered.”
The wind started to blow, sending large patches of red lotus swaying.
The cold moonlight and starlight formed rolling silver gauze on the rippling water, illuminating the faces of the Demon Lord and the Holy Son.
One showed frost, aloof and with everything under control; the other burned with the fire of humiliation, full of hatred and unwillingness.
Lin Fuqing thought to himself that he had finally taken this step again.
The web that was painstakingly woven finally closed, and the chess moves that were carefully planned were played with no regrets. From the moment he was reborn, the Demon Lord had calculated today.
He would got to Liuhua Continent, contact Ji Na, and pretend to be unaware of everything and be taken to the Mountain, Sea, and Stars Terrace.
And then today, and tonight.
Control Ji Na’s soul.
There were two reasons.
First of all, of course, he had to keep Ji Na under tight control and not let the Holy Son tell anyone about the revelation regarding the calamity star.
As for the second reason, it was because he needed the power of Ziwei Pavilion and needed the Son of Ziwei to be his puppet.
Lin Fuqing suddenly smiled again. The Demon Lord looked down at Ji Na and said, “Holy Son… If I tell you that Lin Fuqing also wants to protect the sentient beings in this fairy world, would you believe it?”
Jina sneered in response.
The Demon Lord didn’t say much, but the smile in his eyes deepened.
…In his previous life, Lin Fuqing traveled between Liuhuaz Continent and Ziwei Pavilion, and between various major immortal sects. In order to prevent the backflow of yin qi, he almost exhausted all his energy.
However, he lacked prestige and could not convince the people and was powerless in many places. The low-level outer disciples of Xuyun Sect could not help him at all.
But it would be different if it was Jina. The Saint of Ziwei Pavilion was in a position to predict the fortune and misfortune of the three realms. Once the Saint opens his mouth, which immortal sect dares not to believe it?
The disciples of Ziwei Pavilion worship the Holy Son like a god, and all practice the art of divination and calculation. With this group of people, it would be much easier for Lin Fuqing whether he wants to prevent the immortal calamity or search for reborn souls, including clues of the true God.
“Just be a good puppet, foolish child…”
Lin Fuqing stretched out his hand and touched Ji Na’s cheek helplessly.
“Be obedient.” The Emperor’s slender white fingers lightly stroked the side of the Holy Son’s face. After a moment’s pause, the fingertips fell down as if tired. “As long as you are obedient… no one will die…”
Lin Fuqing closed his eyes.
At the last moment before he exited the illusion of the sea of consciousness, he seemed to see the events of his past life again, and saw the… boiling blood splashing on this Mountain, Sea, and Stars Terrace.